The delegations of the DRC government and three Congolese
rebel groups went into direct talks with each other
in the Zambian capital, Lusaka, on Friday, without
their respective allies and the Zambian mediators,
in an effort to achieve progress in the peace negotiations
that have been alternatively stalling and groping forward
all week. The new format had proved effective and there
was a feeling that the real issues were finally being
discussed, news agencies said. A rebel split on Thursday
had threatened to derail the process entirely when
the Goma faction of the rebel Rassemblement congolais
pour la democratie (RCD) refused to participate while
ousted RCD leader Ernest Wamba dia Wamba remained at
the talks.

Rwanda considers political settlement

Rwanda had also shifted its position in agreeing there
should be a political rather than merely military solution
to the issue of the Interahamwe and ex-FAR elements
in DRC, including possible safe return for foot soldiers
and 'fellow travellers', media sources stated.

Reassertion of government control still a sticking point

The cruxes that remained were reported to be DRC President
Laurent-Desire Kabila's insistence on reestablishing
government authority over areas seized by the rebels
in the past year once a ceasefire was established,
as well as the timing of foreign troop withdrawals,
integration of rebel forces into a national army and
the nature of an internal political settlement.

"Humanitarian disaster" in Kabinda as fighting
rages

Heavy fighting for control of Kabinda, 130 km east of
the strategically important diamond centre of Mbuji-Mayi,
has made the town a "humanitarian disaster",
according to human rights workers quoted by the Missionary
Service News Agency (MISNA) on Thursday. It reported
that between the rebels' attack and counter-attacks
by troops loyal to the government, "the human
cost has been huge" - with many "baby soldiers"
recruited by the rebels among the victims. Congolese
officials said thousands of people, including the governor
of Kasai Oriental province, Jean-Charles Okoto, had
fled Mbuyi-Mayi in the face of rebel advances on Kabinda
and Miba, AP news agency reported.

Kabila calls for progress on national debate

Kabila called on Thursday for plans for a national debate
on the future of the DRC to be speeded up and for the
organising committee to renew contacts with countries
that have offered to host the debate, Reuters reported.
It quoted vice-president of the organising committee,
Delphin Banza, as saying that Kabila - who was receiving
details of four draft laws to be put before the forum
- was keen to move on from preparations to the debate
proper.

Danger follows activists fleeing DRC

Human Rights Watch on Thursday said human rights activists
fleeing increased harassment by the government and
RCD - "who do not want witnesses to their abuses"
- were also faced with increasing risks in neighbouring
countries. A statement from the organisation, received
by IRIN, cited the case of Medi Djuma-Bihira, a Congolese
activist seeking asylum in Uganda, who "disappeared"
on 16 June. Suliman Baldo, a Human Rights Watch senior
researcher, urged the Ugandan government to investigate
the disappearance of Djuma-Bihira and urged UNHCR to
make the protection of those most at risk, including
human rights activists facing persecution, a key priority.

Rebel court martial sentences six to death

An RCD court martial in Uvira, South Kivu, has sentenced
six rebel soldiers to death and another seven to prison
terms for illegally selling arms and ammunition, media
sources on Friday quoted the rebel Radio Uvira as saying.
The court also recommended that the 13 be expelled
from the rebel army. The case was reputed to be part
of an effort to restore military discipline and win
popular support among eastern Congolese civilians disaffected
by the war.

TANZANIA: Reduced refugee flow gives camp staff respite

The number of new refugees entering Tanzania from the
DRC dropped to 800 over Wednesday and Thursday, giving
humanitarian workers some desperately needed respite
after more than 4,300 refugees had crossed in boats
along Lake Tanganyika on Monday and Tuesday, a UNHCR
statement received by IRIN on Friday reported. There
was no immediate explanation for the decrease. In the
past 10 days, Congolese refugees have fled from South
Kivu and from 10 to 12 villages along the border between
South Kivu and Katanga provinces where fighting has
been heavy, UNHCR said.

REPUBLIC OF CONGO: Eight killed in Ninja attack

Ninja militia allied to former prime minister Bernard
Kolelas killed eight people in an ambush on a military
convoy between Linzolo and Bandza-Dounga, 50 km southwest
of Brazzaville, Reuters reported on Wednesday, citing
military sources. Those killed included six soldiers
plus a civilian driver and his assistant, it said.

UGANDA: Sudan visit seeks to "pre-empt" Kony
return

Northern Uganda officials were planning to meet with
the Sudanese government over its support for rebels
of the Lord's Resistance Army (LRA), news agencies
said. The semi-official 'New Vision' newspaper quoted
Gulu district chairman Walter Ochola as saying his
team would travel to Sudan to meet National Assembly
speaker Hassan al Turabi "and tell him to stop
supporting rebel leader Joseph Kony's war which is
killing the innocent people in Acholi." A media
source in Gulu told IRIN on Friday that the Khartoum
mission was an attempt by Ochola to "pre-empt"
a planned return of Kony to northern Uganda in about
a month.

GREAT LAKES: EU approves $50 million for humanitarian
efforts

The European Commission on Thursday announced its approval
of humanitarian aid worth over US$ 50 million (53.31
million euros) for the Great Lakes region to enable
humanitarian partners of the European Community Humanitarian
Office (ECHO) carry out programmes for the remainder
of the year. Almost US$ 20 million will go to WFP to
distribute emergency food aid to refugees, displaced
people and vulnerable populations in Tanzania, the
DRC and the Republic of Congo, according to a press
release received by IRIN. The remainder will go to
UN and international Red Cross agencies coordinating
NGO humanitarian efforts in Burundi, the Republic of
Congo, the DRC, Rwanda and Tanzania.

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